During Thanksgiving week, we discussed the topic of gratitude in a meeting at work. My colleagues and I reflected on what we are grateful for. Many of us, in addition to giving thanks for our families, gave thanks for living in a city where immigrants’ rights are respected, and where our daughters still have rights to make decisions about their bodies.
But many of us also spoke about how astonished we were by the results of the presidential election on Nov. 5, and its seeming rejection of the constitutional protections we hold dear.
So, like any modern philosopher, I turned to my phone to double-check that I really understood what this country was supposed to be, at its core. “Hey, Google, what is the essential meaning of the U.S. Constitution?” I asked. Its answer: “The U.S. Constitution is the supreme law of the United States that establishes the structure of the government, defines the rights of citizens, and limits the power of the government.”
So here I am, more confused than ever by the election results.
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My parents were immigrants from Colombia who moved to Puerto Rico (and yes, Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory) in the late 1960s. My dad was a liberal, and in the few moments he had my attention while I was growing up, he would tell me why he came to this country. He would say to me: “If you come here, and you work hard, you will be able to get an education. And it is best to be a liberal because then you are for individual freedoms, progressive reforms, separation of church and state, and focus on individual rights and economic progress.”
It made sense to me. But that was before reality TV rewired U.S. pop culture, our psyches, and eventually, our politics.
Back in the early 2000s, I was working in ad sales for Telemundo and Univision, so our TVs were basically honorary family members — always on. Of all the shows my family watched back then, two stand out. First, there was Emeril Live, which turned my oldest son into a mini-Emeril Lagasse, randomly shouting “Bam!” and “Let’s kick it up a notch!” during every endeavor — but especially whenever we prepared empanadas to share with his schoolmates.
Then there was The Apprentice. My youngest son fully embraced his inner (gulp!) Donald Trump and would strut around the house firing everyone. ”You’re fired!” he’d say to Carlos Santana (our dog), his stuffed animals, his sisters — no one was safe.
Today in their 30s, one of my sons is a confident, driven, entrepreneur managing his own business, and the other channels his charisma and creativity into community organizing. As someone who has spent a lifetime in marketing and advertising, I recognize that reality TV played some part in how they turned out.
But other seeds planted by reality TV have flowered in less constructive ways — especially in the realm of politics.
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The Apprentice subtly taught us that entitlement and arrogance were OK, making it seem normal for those in power to dismiss others without empathy. The show’s focus on wealth, luxury, and status painted success as being solely about money and power, promoting a materialistic worldview that overshadowed personal growth, social responsibility, and deeper values.
The show also normalized gender and diversity stereotypes, making such biases seem acceptable, something my daughters — strong, thoughtful young women — have been frustrated to see echoed in the campaign and presidential election all these years later.
Not everything is lost, however.
In Philadelphia — where the Constitution was written — we still have the freedom to fight for equity, dignity, and opportunities for all. Here, we can defend the fundamental principles of the Constitution: guaranteeing individual rights and limiting the excesses of government.
We should not and will not concede this new fight — let’s kick it up a notch! — because this is the fight that truly defines us as a nation.
Uriel Rendón is a marketing and communications executive and vice president of Impacto Media, publishers of Impacto Newspaper and Impacto Digital.
This post was originally published on here
